Seabreeze is a classic amusement park in Rochester, New York adjacent to Irondequoit Bay.
It’s biggest claim to fame is that it is the fourth oldest operating amusement park
in the United States, and unsurprisingly, it has retained that old-school charm. So in this video,
I will review Seabreeze and explain why families and amusement park
historians alike need to check this park out. Seabreeze opened back in 1879 along Lake Ontario.
At first it was mostly a picnic ground, but it slowly grew into an amusement park. They built
a series of wood coasters, one of which still operates as the park’s signature coaster in Jack
Rabbit. This ride is the longest continuously operating roller coaster in the country.
The park struggled through the 1920s and 1930s due to a series of fires and the Great Depression,
but they survived and renamed themselves Dreamland. The park would go by this name
until 1975, when they reverted their name back to Seabreeze, which it has gone by ever since.
The park is roughly halfway between Syracuse and Buffalo, making it a nice pitstop off of I-90.
But many people vacation in this area. And if you’re local to the Rochester area,
you can access the park using the city bus line. If you arrive by car, you can park in a large free
lot. The park doesn’t have too many tall rides, but you get the best shots of Jack Rabbit from
here. Seeing the out-and-back layout running along the lot gets you hyped for your day.
As of 2023, admission costs roughly $40 per person. This gives you access to all
the amusement rides and the attached Raging Rivers water park. This is a
fair price for what the park has to offer. Seabreeze oozes old-school charm. The park
has that classic amusement park vibe. No theming, but the midways are clean and rides are colorful.
Then the tallest rides and back areas of the park offer stunning views overlooking the bay.
This park has such a nice atmosphere. And it’s only heightened by the friendly employees.
This is a park where you can take it easy. It’s not the largest park at just 35 acres in size
and the layout is simple. It forms a reverse T. Most rides are in a long strip parallel to
the parking lot. Then the last few rides and the water park extend back towards the water.
Whenever I’ve visited this park on summer weekdays, crowds have been manageable.
I’ve never had to wait more than 15-20 minutes for any of the amusement rides,
and usually I’ve waited much less than that. The park does caution guests visiting on summer
weekends that the park can hit capacity, so I would arrive early those days just in case.
Seabreeze typically opens at 11 am. Half the rides open with the park; the other half open an hour
later. If you arrive at opening, I’d prioritize Bobsleds early since that is their lowest capacity
coaster and then if you’re interested in the water park, do that before it starts to fill up.
While the coasters don’t have the highest capacities, the staff members will load
them as quickly as possible, so the lines move at a steady albeit slow rate. But that’s fine
for the crowd levels this park sees. Now let’s jump into the ride lineup.
Seabreeze caters mostly towards families and their attractions reflect that.
The park currently has 4 different roller coasters.
The biggest of the bunch is Jack Rabbit. Designed by John Miller,
this ride recently celebrated its 100th birthday and it’s still running strong.
It’s a very smooth coaster for its age and it offers an enjoyable experience too.
Several hills offer pops of airtime and the unbanked turns offer some laterals too.
Then this coaster has a fun tunnel at the end with a surprise. I have an entire review
going more in-depth, but this is the main reason coaster enthusiasts will want to visit this park.
The park’s most unique coaster is Bobsleds. This may have been the first hybrid conversion as the
reminds me of an old Galaxi coaster. It’s biggest strength is its charm. You ride in these small
vehicles and the layout wraps around a giant oak tree. No notable elements, just some mild drops
and turns. But it’s a one-of-a-kind ride you won’t find elsewhere, as I state in my review.
Whirlwind may be the park’s most thrilling coaster.
This is a standard Maurer SC2000 spinning coaster. But this one has minimal trim brakes
and spins more than usual. I was spinning like a top for the final 2/3 of the layout.
But the highlight is still the start. You get a fantastic view of the bay followed
by a sizable drop that’s particularly great if you experience it backwards.
The final coaster is Bear Trax. This is a well-landscaped Miler kiddie coaster.
If you want the credit, just know that you will need to accompany a child.
On that note, the park has Kiddie City towards the center of the park. This has a cluster of
attractions exclusively for kids, so it’s easy for them to jump from ride to ride.
For adult flat rides, you have a fine collection of spinning
rides. Some are old classics while others are more modern.
Then you also have a few pendulum rides. The best of the bunch is Screamin’ Eagle. This
inverting pendulum is the park’s only ride to take you upside-down. This one rotates slowly,
so it’s light on the positive Gs, but it offers good hangtime over the top.
Another ride worth highlighting is the park’s Carousel.
After a 1994 fire burned down their old carousel, the park built their own with hand-carved horses
and a classic band organ. It’s a beauty. And the area around the attraction serves
as a museum of sorts for the park’s history. One gap in the park’s lineup is the lack of a dark
ride. The park used to have a Ghost Train, but it was damaged beyond repair in that 1994 fire.
The park only has one water ride, but I think it’s their best overall attraction. The Log
Flume has a simple but scenic course, and it ends with a shockingly wild plunge. It reused
the structure for the old Over the Falls ride and has a 55 degree angle, making it one of the
steepest drops on any flume. You get a nice pop of airtime, especially since you have no restraints.
Moving onto the water park, you have a series of tube slides. The best of the
bunch is the Helix tube bowl slide. The park used to have an awesome body
slide named Banzai Pipleine. This was a steep 5 story tall speed slide with some good airtime.
But it was replaced in 2011 for the more family-friendly Hydro Racer mat slide.
The rest of the water park has some gentler attractions such as a lazy river and wave
pool. Then kids have a dedicated water play area with sprayers and smaller slides.
Beyond the rides, there is a stage near the main entrance. What type of show you’ll get depends
on the day. Sometimes it will be a gymnastics show. Other times it will be a musical one.
I haven’t gotten too much food at Seabreeze since there are a lot of eateries near the park, but
I’ve gotten a few snacks. They’re average quality and reasonably priced for an amusement park.
How much time you’ll need depends on your interests. I can comfortably do everything
I want at Seabreeze in a half day. This gives me time to get a few laps on the coasters and
best non-coasters. And then I can also just soak up the atmosphere. I could see families
wanting a full day, especially if they plan to spend a few hours in the water park.
But if you only care about the coasters, you probably can do everything in an hour or two.
So do I recommend Seabreeze? Yes I do. This is New York’s most charming park. I love the look
and feel of this park. Then you have some solid rides as well, several of which are
older or unique. I think this is the best park in northern New York for families.
If you purely want thrills, your best bet is the nearby Six Flags Darien Lake.
So those are my thoughts about Seabreeze in Rochester, New York. What are your thoughts
about this classic park? Do you enjoy it? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
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coaster and amusement park videos here at Canobie Coaster. Thanks for watching!